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What’s Better: Digital or Physical Games?

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Yep, if anything is a first-world problem, it’s this one. But at least we have the freedom and the blessing to have to debate such a topic!


Full shelves, or full hard drives? Physical boxes, or digital convenience? We gamers are forced to make this tough decision with just about every new game we purchase. There are pros and cons to buying your games at retail as well as through Nintendo’s eShop, so we’re here to cover the entire topic and make sense of the decision for you. A lot of it will still come down to preference, but at least we can examine the whole issue!

Shot by Alex Campbell

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Zelda: Skyward Sword Review (Wii)

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“Yeah, I think it would be great if we totally forgot about the pointer on the Wii Remote and arbitrarily used motion controls…! Dahur!” – Skyward Sword Developers


After battling the game for around a year, Simeon finally declared defeat over the evil Demise and saved Hyrule. It wasn’t a quick trip through this Wii classic, but Simeon was noting his experience along the way and he has returned from the journey to tell us all about it. With the game being recently released for download on Wii U’s eShop, this is a great opportunity to see if a revisit to this game is worth it for you!

Shot by Alex Campbell

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

No Cross-Buy? No Buy!

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The year is 2016. Competing consoles have full-fledged online efforts backing their console and software. Purchases are tracked digitally, automatically, and conveniently. It’s not much different in the smartphone and tablet arena either: buy a game on your iPhone, play it on your iPad. Pretty simple! Pretty commonsensical!

That is until you step foot into the realm of Nintendo, where it’s like pulling teeth to get consoles and handhelds to talk to each other. The realm of Nintendo, where we all have Nintendo Accounts, My Nintendo accounts, and NNIDs, and we only have a vague idea of how those all fit together.

The realm where you buy an old SNES game on your Wii U and it’s not there on your 3DS.

We’re talking about cross-buy, and more specifically, the lack of cross-buy.

Nintendo’s Virtual Console service is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. After a decade of offering their classic titles for sale digitally, how has Nintendo’s service expanded? Well, the answer is unfortunate: barely.

Virtual Console made a small jump from Wii to 3DS with restore points. The next real iteration was on the Wii U, which implemented the 3DS improvements plus customizable controls and a few other small perks.

The nice thing was, it was really easy to transfer your VC games from Wii over to your Wii U console!

Oh – wait… no, it wasn’t. You had to buy them all over again. Sure, Nintendo gave you a slight discount for owning the same software on Wii, and the service recognized that, but rather than letting you access your VC games on Wii U’s home menu with the new perks, you had to pay again or just deal with the outdated features and slog through old emulated Wii menus.

Nintendo doesn’t charge for operating system software updates, why should they charge when Virtual Console technology is upgraded?

I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard the news that Super Nintendo games were coming specifically to the New 3DS as an exclusive feature over the previous generation’s model. You can’t expect me to believe that the original 3DS couldn’t run Super Nintendo games – that would be absurd. But they desperately needed some unique features for the handheld (because they couldn’t make more than one exclusive game for it), so SNES VC titles were the answer.

I own quite a few SNES games on my Wii U, and by this time, Nintendo Network IDs were a thing. They have already been implemented. NNIDs were supposed to be the answer to all our 21st century problems with Nintendo’s online systems – it was supposed to track our purchases, unify the different Nintendo platforms… it was supposed to bring balance to the force!

Yet another implementation of the Virtual Console had arrived with no mention, no promise, not a peep about cross-buy.

I had been frustrated about Nintendo attempting to sell us the same exact retro software over and over again for quite some time, but I held onto hope that Nintendo was going to make good on their word to use NNIDs and make the whole Virtual Console experience more cohesive. When they came out with NNIDs in March (launching alongside Miitomo) and then put SNES games on the handheld, it was finally the straw that broke the camel’s back.

The straw being the terrible value proposition from Nintendo that shows they have a broken business model for their classic titles.
The camel’s back being my willingness to put up with it.

I boycotted SNES Virtual Console titles on 3DS, and in fact, I haven’t bought a single VC title in the time since. I’m through with it. I don’t have $8 (per game) x 10 (titles) for every new console iteration they come out with… for the same games!

Let me rephrase that… I do have the money, but I don’t have the will to spend it on this stuff time and time again. I have plenty of nostalgia for Nintendo’s older games, but I won’t allow them to keep using that against me.

It’s not $8 – it’s the principal.

Okay, maybe I am planning on buying the NES Classic Edition! But that’s different…

The point is, I’ve been burned too many times. I’ve invested too much in this broken, excuse for a digital platform called the Virtual Console and seen it count for nothing when new hardware comes out. Nintendo’s online systems and their business sense isn’t smart enough to allow my purchases to carry over, but I am smart enough to avoid the same traps over and over again!

Nintendo, listen closely: You don’t burn your early adopters. You don’t make your die-hard fans pay twice.

You don’t punish people for buying your games early!

You reward these customers. You say: here, you have a big collection of VC games on your Wii? We spent 700 man hours figuring out how to make those transfer over to your Wii U home menu, for free, and now you can keep enjoying those titles just as easily.

You reward your loyal customers. You take the information about their SNES purchases connected with their NNID and you download those games automatically onto their 3DS, so they open it up and see a surprise gift on their menu screen. I know you can do this stuff – you send me random demos all the time.

Because of so many bad past experiences with the Virtual Console, I’ve turned a deaf ear to the service. I won’t be playing another classic Nintendo game digitally until they address this issue.

I’m waiting eagerly for the Nintendo Direct where Kimishima, Reggie, or Bill Trinen takes the stage and announces the new direction for Virtual Console, a cohesive experience where Nintendo respects my investments in their software.

Until then, I’ll be ignoring all press-releases and the insignificant drip-feed of the same old games every week.

DSiWare: Looking Back on the Best Games

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X-Scape. X-Scape. X-Scape. The game IS CALLED X-SCAPE!


DSiWare, a relic of a bygone age! We are here to fill you in on the best downloadable games from the service past.

Shot by Alex Campbell

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

BoxBoxBoy! Review

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BoxBoxBoy! is the sequel to the hit downloadable puzzle game BoxBoy! for the 3DS that expands on the original, quite literally, as this time around you use two sets of boxes instead of one. While no prior experience with the original is needed, it really helps as the mechanics you learn over the course of an entire game you learn in a few levels. You’ll still be hopping on and throwing boxes, along with hooking onto ledges and snaking your way through narrow paths, and it’s all still a lot of fun.

3DS_BoxBoxBoy_E32016_SCRN_06
Hooked on a feeling.

The only new idea is creating two sets of boxes, but that’s okay as it completely changes the way you have to solve the puzzles and sometimes significantly ramps up the difficulty. There’s still plenty of switches, spikes, and lazers to deal with and it definitely had me stumped for a while on more than one occasion. There are usually a few levels in a row where you use the same mechanic in increasingly difficult puzzles, only to ditch it for a long while and come back to it when you’ve forgotten about it. Absolutely fantastic level design and it made feel dumb for not realizing the solution much soon than I had. There are bonus levels in which you replay chunks of levels you previously completed except this time with either the ninja or the bunny costume from the first game, but you have a lot less boxes at your disposal.

Two sets of boxes, twice the challenge.

The collectible crowns are back once again. If you’re not familiar, think hidden coins from Mario, except you have a limit of boxes you can create until it disappears. Being the OCD gamer I am, I had to get all of them, and a few were extremely difficult. It adds a lot to the way you approach levels and to the overall replay-ability.

BoxBoxBoy! really stacks up to the competition.
BoxBoxBoy! really stacks up to the competition!

The more crowns you get, the more coins you get at the end of every level, which can be spent in the games shop. There you are able to purchase new costumes, short a quirky comics, and music from the game. All of the costumes you unlock from the original BoxBoy! transfer over too, which is a neat little addition.

There’s quite a lot of content for the price and is a great buy for the puzzle and platformer fan alike. While I recommend playing the original game first, this is a sequel that lives up to the original and shouldn’t be missed.

Check out our video review of BoxBoxBoy! or the original BoxBoy!

Steam-Rolling Through Dig 2!

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It’s the first installment of Let’s Play Switch! Simeon and Scott sit down to take SteamWorld Dig 2 for a spin, the newly released digging Metroidvania Nindie title. Is it worth your $20? Yes! Is it worth you watching this entire video? Yes again!

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

So… Let’s try this “Stardew Valley” Thing

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Scott’s grandpa just died and left him a farm (Two Button Crew Farm, to be precise) to inherit. After clearing out some dead branches, bushes, and rocks, Scott was ready to plant a few parsnips. But he has no idea what he’s doing, and there’re a bunch of neighbors in the city nearby that he’s yet to meet. Oh, and he hasn’t eaten in 7 days. How will Scott survive? Watch to find out!

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Which Games are “Perfect for the Switch”? Scott's Thoughts

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“That game is perfect for Switch!”

I’ve heard that phrase every day since the system launched. But what does it mean?

What makes a game perfect for Switch? I started getting a little confused when I heard it simultaneously applied to games like Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Picross. Two completely different, polar opposite experiences.

  • Is the Switch perfect for long, single-player adventures because you can chip away at them whenever you have time, on the go?
  • Is the Switch perfect for bite-sized games that you can boot up and score a quick-win in a couple minutes?
  • Is Nintendo’s new console a match made in heaven for single player games that you can hold up close and personal?
  • Or is it perfect for multiplayer, competitive games in a LAN setting?

The answer, of course, is yes. Yes to all of the above. Nintendo seems to have caught lightning in a bottle and created a piece of kit that’s begging to have every new release, multiplatform game, indie title, and definitive edition developed for or ported to it.

There has never been a home console or portable that draws games toward it with such a magnetic force, attracting a diverse collection of titles at that.

A new phenomenon has started to happen where multiplatform announcements are discussed as “coming to Switch and other platforms.”

Nine Parchments – Can We Work Together?

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Simeon and Scott tackle the brand new Switch eShop game, Nine Parchments! Spoilers: It’s great for two player co-op. This is an unusual twin-stick shooter, not taking place in outer space but grounded in the world of fantasy. Check the demo out for free on Switch eShop!

“Exit the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Octopath Traveler – Day of the Demo

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Neither Simeon or Scott are big RPG players, but how can you resist a game that looks like Project Octopath Traveler? Especially when a free demo is available! This Square Enix title is coming to Nintendo Switch in 2018, but we’re going to take it for a spin and get some initial impressions of the game.
“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

There’s a 2D Breath of the Wild on Switch eShop Scott’s Thoughts

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On the Nintendo Switch eShop, there’s a 2-dimensional Breath of the Wild for sale.

It’s called SteamWorld Dig 2.

This is an indie title by Image & Form. You don’t have to like steampunk culture or have beaten the original to enjoy this title, it stands on its own as a must-play.

Everything that you loved about the the open-world Zelda adventure is here, in this little downloadable title.

Strictly speaking, Dig 2’s genre is most like a Metroidvania, but fans of Breath of the Wild will feel right at home in the game’s underground caverns.

Did you like defeating shrines? You’re in luck; with caves, puzzles must be completed to earn collectibles and power-ups. Just like shrines, caves feature additional hidden secrets apart from the main objective, for explorers and completionists.

Like Link’s stamina mechanics, the main character (Dorothy) has meters for water and light that the player has to keep an eye on and take into account while trying to reach new areas.

The game can be played nonlinearly, any time you wish to take a break from the main plotline to enhance your strengths.

Filling in Hyrule’s map by locating towers is not unlike uncovering new caverns and locating fast-travel points.

Special abilities can be unlocked that are very similar to the Champion Abilities in Zelda. I activated an especially helpful modification in SteamWorld which I lovingly referred to right away as “Mipha’s Grace.” Even the HUD elements share attributes in common, like how the special abilities indicate on-screen when they are ready to be used.

Don’t miss this title! Even if you don’t feel like you’re ready for “another Breath of the Wild,” keep in mind that this game is much smaller. SteamWorld Dig 2 doesn’t overstay it’s welcome.

It’s also plenty unique, with a creative world, interesting characters, and fun gameplay loops that keep you coming back and digging deeper.

Retail Vs. Digital Pricing Scott’s Thoughts

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There is a discrepancy.

When you walk into a store and purchase a new video game, you get more in return: a display case, a printed cover and (sometimes) instruction manual, a cartridge housing the game’s data, the ability to lend the copy to a friend, and the option of selling the copy when you’re done with it.

Downloadable versions provide none of the above benefits (though you could definitely argue for the convenience factor). They cost the same as a physical version, but take up more space on your hard drive or memory card, and are far cheaper for the publisher to distribute.

With digital games, creators don’t pay for printing discs or cartridges, packaging, shipping, or shelf-space at stores. They also don’t split any profit with retailers.

You would almost think the downloadable version should be cheaper.

Further confusing the matter are stores like Best Buy and Amazon, where you can actually get retail releases at a steep discount. It feels backward.

The reason Nintendo and its competitors are afraid to cut gamers a deal on digital versions is that it would make retailers upset. Their relationships with WalMart, Target and others would be severely damaged as gamers flocked to online offerings to get the lowest price.

Why doesn’t Nintendo just cut its retail ties and only offer their games digitally?
They’re not ready yet. The majority of sales still take place in brick and mortar, but that is starting to change.

Someday, a Nintendo console might not come equipped with a cartridge slot. And just maybe, downloadable games will be a little cheaper.

(Or not because of inflation, the rising cost of development, server infrastructure, and Nintendo being a business trying to make money. But one can dream.)

Why Indies are Better than 3rd Parties Scott’s Thoughts

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Do you love huge, generalized sweeping statements? Well, you’re in luck!

Indies are way better than 3rd party developers.

When I play a 1st party Nintendo game, the polish is undeniable. I can practically taste the quality assurance oozing out of every aspect of the game.

Playing a 3rd party title is often a disappointing affair. I’m reminded how much less effort they put into their menus, onboarding new players, readability, and the overall stability of the experience.

Indies, however? I’ve had the pleasure of completing multiple independently-developed games that feel as if they belong in Nintendo’s own stable of IP. They often approach development the same way Nintendo does, creating a unique mechanic and building an entire world around it.

These self-published titles come with lower budgets and therefore have less marketing. They have to compensate with more ambitious pitches; it takes a lot to stand out on the Switch eShop, with handfuls of games being dumped onto the store weekly.

An indie game tries to do less, and with that narrower focus comes a more concentrated dose of polish.

For the most part, independent games are structurally and functionally tight. You can learn what’s expected of you in a matter of seconds, just like an old arcade or NES game.

They are more often labors of love, made by people who don’t come home with a check twice a month from an employer but quit their job to work on the idea that they just can’t get out of their head.

Indie games are less restricted by businessmen who demand a carbon copy of what’s already selling and are free to experiment with art styles and non-traditional music.

Do yourself a favor and enjoy indie games, thereby supporting these small studios. They both need it and deserve it.

Exploring Snipperclips Plus DLC!

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Snipperclips, Switch’s first split-Joy-Con-co-op experience has been expanded! More levels and modes were added as DLC, and sold as a complete physical package! Maybe you have the original game and are wondering if the upgrade is worth it? Or if you’re just ready to have a good time, watch Simeon and Scott snip and clip their way to victory.

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Slime-San: Are we Sold?

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Slime-San is an indie game for Nintendo Switch. It’s got a unique art style, interesting physics, and a steep challenge. There’s a demo available for free, and Simeon & Scott give it a spin to see if it’s worth the buy.

“Exit the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Best Switch eShop Games at Launch

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I love shopping… eShopping, that is.


Don’t forget the downloads! There are some stellar titles on the Switch eShop, even if the launch seemed a little sparse. Quality over quantity, right? Indies and 3rd parties are strongly supporting Nintendo’s efforts right out of the gate this time around, and it’s our responsibility to let them know that their support matters. Vote with your wallet and play these awesome titles!

Shot by Alex Campbell

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Snipperclips Gameplay + Impressions

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These is the part of the website where we write little snips of funny text relating to the clips below.


Snipperclips is a Switch exclusive game that makes excellent use of the system’s unique Joy-Con controllers. Playable alone and doubly fun with friends, this devious puzzler is charming, creative, and challenging – the “Three Cs” of puzzle games! What more could you want? Watch Ryan and Scott play through some of the tough levels as they discuss the game’s merits.

Shot by Alex Campbell

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Wii U Masterpiece: Affordable Space Adventures

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You DON’T own this game?! Are you even human???


Of course, it’s spring 2017 and the hype is centered in on Nintendo Switch… but there’s an indie Wii U game that we just couldn’t help but tell you guys all about. It’s called Affordable Space Adventure, and it DESERVES you to play it! We can’t speak highly enough of it, so we’ve bestowed upon it the rare designation of “masterpiece” and this video practically begs you to give it a download! Footage Credit to DreamcastGuy!

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Let’s Play Affordable Space Adventures! (3/3)

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If you don’t like spoilers for this game, then… BUY IT ALREADY!


Part 3/3: Simeon and Scott take on their new favorite indie game, and it’s on Wii U! The game is Affordable Space Adventures, an asynchronous delight that will surprise you and challenge you. It’s a must own title, and this three part series is going to demonstrate just how hard the game can get toward the later levels!

“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/